Directed by Todd Phillips
Where & When: Arclight Cinemas, Hollywood, CA. October 7, 2019 5:45 PM
The Joker, the deranged and insane comic-book villain, is just as well known as his arch-nemesis, the Dark Knight or as most of the world refers to as Batman. I guess some thought that he deserved to have his back story told and we now have "Joker", a divisive and provocative work which explores how a sad, mentally disturbed man is pushed by a cruel, indifferent society in to becoming a cruel, homicidal messiah.
Todd Phillips, the director behind the high-concept comedies, "Old School" and "The Hangover" trilogy, has surprisingly been given the reins of this violent thriller. He has effectively created a world that goes far outside of what you would normally find in a movie based on comics, a place that is far more sinister, frightening and credible. And we have Joaquin Phoenix, the three-time Oscar nominee who is best known for his impressive work in playing strange, offbeat characters, taking on this title character in a deeply committed performance with the actor going as far as losing over fifty pounds to make himself appear even more deviant.
"Joker" was the unexpected winner for Best Film at the recent Venice Film Festival which makes it appear like this film rises well above the standard super-hero action-adventure. While the film is certainly grounded with no costumed crusaders or CGI enhanced battles to be found yet if you remove the comic-book connection, the troubling and brutal dramatic situations found in "Joker" would be seen as far less innovative or entertaining.
We first meet Arthur Fleck (Phoenix) on the streets of 1980's Gotham City dressed as a clown, flipping a advertisement sign to promote a business. A gang of kids steal the sign and when Fleck tries to get it back, they beat him savagely. And to add insult to his injury, his boss informs Fleck he has to pay for the missing board.
Life at home isn't much better for Arthur, who lives and cares for his seriously ill mother (Frances Conroy). He not only has to take medication to help control his fragile mental state but also suffers from a rare disorder that causes him to laugh during inappropriate moments when he is stressed. This clearly leaves Arthur feeling further isolated and lonely.
Fleck seems to have a large sign on his back saying "Easy victim right here" as he becomes the target for a trio of drunken businessmen. However this time, Arthur is not left in a bloodied heap. Pulling out a gun given to him by a co-worker to use as protection, Fleck leaves his would-be-assailants groveling and full of bullet holes.
With one of the men perishing, the city is sent in to a panic, fearful that a dangerous vigilante is on the loose. The victims happened to work for Wayne Enterprises and the billionaire owner, Thomas Wayne (Brett Cullen) is running for Mayor. He uses this tragic situation to his advantage to show Gotham City he will be tough on crime while labeling the criminal a cowardly clown envious of rich, successful people. Some citizens find this statement offensive and take to the streets to protest in clown masks.
Mr. Phillips' goal was to make "Joker" a complex drama that does not feel like a direct extension of the DC comic-book universe. And with that, the director is successful. As a filmmaker, Phillips creates an interesting blend of realism and fantasy with Lawrence Sher's camerawork highlighting the garish and muddy colors which helps add to the urban decay of this dystopian world. But as a storyteller, Phillips is less fortunate. The screenplay, co-written by the director and Scott Silver, may have been aiming for reflective social commentary yet it's not exactly clear in what the film is really trying to say. The horrific deaths and unsettling mayhem that occur seems to imply that these victims may have deserved what came to them. I'm sure the intention is not to be rooting for the sociopathic Fleck. Or is it? Phillips has not made this clear enough in his script.
There are a few well-known character actors popping up in supporting roles including Bill Camp, Shea Whigham, Marc Maron and "Atlanta" co-stars, Brian Tyree Henry and Zazie Beetz who plays a neighbor who shows Arthur a brief moment of kind attention but none of them are really given much to do. And that includes Robert De Niro who appears here as Murray Franklin, a Johnny Carson-type, late-night television host. Arthur is a big fan of the show with Franklin as his inspiration to become a stand-up comedian. After performing during an open-mike and bombing quite badly, Fleck's taped performance ends up going viral, catching the attention of Franklin who invites him on the show. Fleck accepts but at this point, he's off his meds due to budget cuts and no longer in a joking mood. De Niro is kinda sleepwalking through the film but the real purpose of his appearance was clearly designed to make a subliminal connection to the disturbed and delusional characters he once played in the Martin Scorsese films, "Taxi Driver" and "King of Comedy". There are also elements of the celebrated director's early 1970's work used in "Joker" to help inspire an atmospheric shorthand for the dirty, gritty city of this world yet it comes across as lazy and trite.
What makes "Joker" work at all is the wiry and zany performance of Phoenix. It was reported that the actor was extremely reluctant to take on this iconic role. But once he was reassured that this would not be a conventional version of the character, he was comfortable to join the project and let himself go creatively. Nothing that Phoenix does here is remotely predictable, skillfully going from sensitive and caring to unhinged and ferocious, sometimes impressively all at the same time. Without the sensational work of Mr. Phoenix, you would be far more aware of the thin characterizations and cliched situations that fills the rest of the film.
To me, "Joker" is a sordid, unrelentingly bleak and miserable cinematic experience. Yet people have responded to the film in great numbers, clearly seeing it multiple times to make it not only one of the biggest hits of the year but on course to be one of the rare films to make over a billion dollars at the worldwide box-office. What does this mean? Perhaps people are connecting to the themes of destructive anarchy and violently rising up against the greedy rich. Maybe they are enjoying a refreshing new way of telling a comic-book story that doesn't involve super-powered, costumed heroes or high-flying battles. Or it could be that audiences are just simply entertained by the dark humor in this well-crafted yet unsettling drama that is anchored by a wildly dynamic performance by Mr. Phoenix. No matter. I'm certain nobody is going to see "Joker" to find any dark, hidden messages. Or are they?
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